Fun in the Sun: Pool Safety

Although summer is not officially here yet, the sun is out
and pools are open. Pools surely are fun
in the sun, but nationally, drowning is the second leading cause of
unintentional injury-related death for children ages 1 to 14 years. Children are attracted to water and drowning
can occur, silently, with out notice, when least expected - "the silent
death". How can you keep your kids safe?

More From Good Housekeeping

Having a pool or belonging to a neighborhood swim club can
create great social and outdoor activities for children, and safety in and
around the pool is extremely important. Pool
safety is the combination of several lines of defense including adult
supervision, knowledge of CPR, swimming instruction for your child, gate and
door alarms, and a self closing, self latching gate that opens away from the
pool and door alarms.

Last summer the Good Housekeeping Research Institute tested
a handful on pool alarms which let off an audible alarm when a disturbance in
the pool is detected. The big surprise wasthree failed our test. Check out our test results here.
We also performed a test
on gate alarms which alert the homeowner when someone one has simply
entered the pool area.

What about the public pool you belong to?

The past December, the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa
Safety Act took effect, imposing mandatory federal requirements for
suction-entrapment avoidance and creating a voluntary grant program that
encourages states to pass legislation for pool and spa safety. To be eligible
for this funding, states must write laws that call for pool barriers (covers,
self-closing/self-latching gates, door alarms, and pool alarms) and
suction-entrapment avoidance. States must also set aside money to educate
people about the standards covered in the act.

Not all states have legislation on pool alarms: California,
Connecticut, and New York were the first to dive in. (Connecticut passed a law in 2000, becoming
the first state to require each new residential pool to have a pool alarm.) So
let your voice be heard. Encourage your local government to enact laws to make
pools and spas safer for your kids. Find contact
information for your local representative, then download this
letter to print out and send.